Il feudalesimo asiatico

L'ULTIMO SAMURAI

(Jôi-uchi: Hairyô tsuma shimatsu)

1967, regia di Masaki Kobayashi

Scheda: Nazione: Giappone - Produzione: Mifune Productions Ltd., Toho Company Ltd. - Distribuzione: Regionale, Toho Company Ltd., Toho International Company Inc. - Soggetto: dal romanzo Hairyozuma Shimatsu di Yasuhiko Takiguchi - Sceneggiatura: Shinobu Hashimoto - Fotografia: Kazuo Yamada - Montaggio: Hisashi Sagara - Scenografia: Yoshirô Muraki - Musiche: Tôru Takemitsu - Formato: Tohoscope, B.N. - Durata: 128' (95').

Cast: Toshirô Mifune, Yôko Tsukasa, Tatsuya Nakadai, Tatsuyoshi Ehara, Michiko Otsuka, Etsuko Ichihara, Takeshi Kato, Shigeru Kôyama, Tatsuo Matsumura, Masao Mishima, Isao Yamagata.

Trama e commenti: mymovies.it: «Nel 1725 il samurai Isaburo Sosabara (T. Mifune) che ha dedicato la vita al servizio dello shogun Matsudaira, apprende che suo figlio Yogoro deve sposare Ichi, concubina dello shogun cui aveva dato un figlio. Quando Matsudaira perde il suo unico erede legittimo, ordina a Yogoro di restituirgli moglie e bambino. Suo padre Isaburo si ribella, ma la giustizia non trionfa. Scritto da Shinobu Hashimoto (Harakiri), da un romanzo di Yasuhiko Takiguchi, è un film molto parlato in lente e geometriche cadenze, non lontane da quelle di una tragedia di Racine, in cui i personaggi tengono sotto controllo le passioni sino al punto di ebollizione. Bruscamente si passa a un'ultima mezz'ora di stilizzato cinema d'azione con duelli di squisita eleganza figurativa...».

Plot Summary, Synopsis, Review: IMDb - tvguide.com - filmref.com: «In a time of sustained peace, the powerful daimyo (feudal warlords) have become resigned to an existence of pointless exercises and petty bureaucracy in a determined effort to retain privilege and curry favors from Edo. In an attempt to stave off boredom, Lord Matsudaira's (Tatsuo Matsumura) seasoned swordsman, Isaburo Sasahara (Toshirô Mifune) and his trusted colleague Tatewaki Asano (Tatsuya Nakadai), have been relegated to the task of evaluating swords by felling straw dummies for a report to the chamberlain and reviewing uneventful border records for the daimyo. On the afternoon preceding the Suwa Shrine Festival, steward Takahashi (Shigeru Kôyama) pays a visit to the Sasahara residence in order to propose - or more appropriately, coerce - an arranged marriage between Lord Matsudaira's disfavored mistress, Lady Ichi (Yôko Tsukasa), and Isaburo's oldest son, Yogoro (Takeshi Kato). Having given birth to Lord Matsudaira's younger son, but reported to have physically attacked the daimyo in open court, the controversial Lady Ichi seems an unsuitable match for the reticent and unassuming Yogoro. However, to refuse Lord Matsudaira's request would be deemed an act of defiance and threatens to sully the family name. Impulsively, Yogoro accepts the disagreeable proposition on behalf of his reluctant father, a decision that proves to be an unexpected blessing as the young couple settle into a life of mutual affection and respect. But soon, fortune would turn against the Sasahara family, as Lord Matsudaira demands Ichi's return, and Isaburo is forced to choose between allegiance to his master and devotion to his beloved daughter-in-law...».

Approfondimenti: Movie Review

Conosciuto anche con i titoli: Joî-uchi; Rebellion; Samurai Rebellion.

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